And here's part 3, the last of what's written. Past the end of this (and yeah, it ends in the middle of a scene) there are some sketched out bits, including my first shot at a tender sex scene which really didn't work, but that's about it.

It does kinda peter out and not wrap up properly. I've always had a problem with endings...

And yeah, I'm still arguing with the rich text editor.

Strangest Places

<h1 style="margin-left: 0in; text-indent: 0in;">Scene: Back to school</h1> [Justin]

This was the moment that I was dreading. I'd gotten a few days off from school, and Tristan had stayed with me the whole time, but that couldn't last forever. I was basically OK, at least enough to head back to class. And today was the day. At least it was a Thursday, so things couldn't be too bad for too long.

What made it worse was that the whole school knew what had happened to me, or so Scotty said. That was the one downside to what Mr. C had done, though he probably saved my life. Now everyone knew I was gay. Tristan, though, was his usual cheerful self, and that did help a lot.

Tristan stuck his head in the doorway for a moment. "'Kay, Justin, time to get going!"

"Almost ready!" I had started getting dressed the way I always did for school, but I stopped myself. I'd changed, and I didn't need to hide behind the clothes. Or so I hoped, at least. I had on a grey pocket T-shirt, a pair of cargo pants, and white leather tennis shoes. And I was wearing the bracelet that Tris had picked out for me on my good wrist. The cast was still on, of course, but it was thin enough that it wasn't really getting in the way. I still felt almost naked without my boots, jeans, or leather jacket.

"You look nice," said Tristan, with a kiss, when I walked into the kitchen.

"Thanks," I said, kissing him back. They were just little kisses, but they made me feel better somehow, knowing that Tristan loved me. Tristan grabbed both our books and we drove off to school in silence.

Once we got in we took our time, which was OK with me. My arm was still pretty sore, and I didn't really relish the thought of pushing through the hordes to get to class.

"You look nervous," said Tristan, as we walked.

"Yeah, some," I replied. "Scotty said that everyone knew what happened. It ain't gonna be pretty at times, I think."

"Why?" asked Tris. He sounded puzzled.

"Geez, Tris, you're dense sometimes. Everyone in school knows that my dad beat the shit out of me because I'm gay. Which means that everyone knows that I'm gay. I'm not one of the popular crowd anyway, and there's not going to be a damn thing stopping anyone from f**king around with me. The world's not all that gay-friendly if you hadn't noticed."

"I think maybe you're overreacting. Besides, you've got me."

"You can't be around every minute, though. Sooner or later someone's gonna take a shot just because they can. I mean, look at how you reacted when I kissed you in the park, and you love me. What do you think everyone else is going to do?"

Tristan looked like I slapped him with that last remark, but it was true. He was the nicest guy in school and he still pulled back.

"Just remember your center," said Tristan. "If you can keep that, everything'll work out."

Tris was silent the rest of the way to class, looking like he was deep in thought. Which he probably was, though who knows over what..

"Well, here we are," I said as we approached the classroom. The door was open, and I could hear Mrs. Finney taking roll. We were a minute or so late, but I didn't really care. I took a deep breath and tried to center myself. A little serenity before it all hit the fan wouldn't be a bad thing.

"Tris, my books," I said softly as we stood in front of the door. The whole class could see us, though Finney couldn't. Not that it'd matter much, as she'd give me hell anyway. I think she liked being miserable to me, and my better grades had just pissed her off. "Uh, Tris?" He was looking at me with this funny expression.

While I was expecting several things, including a period of harassment, what I wasn't expecting was what Tristan did. He grabbed me, and kissed me. Passionately. A full-body contact kiss, the kind people do just before they start ripping each other's clothes off. I melted into it and kissed back with vigor. I'd wanted our first real kiss to be special and, damn me if it wasn't. Can't get more special than having the captain of the swim team kiss you full in front of a classful of stunned folks. I could hear the gasps from the room, but I didn't care right then.

Tris broke the kiss, a dopey grin on his face. "See you after class," he said. He tucked a photo in my t-shirt pocket, then turned and loped down the hall. I just watched him go. The lovable doofus.

"If you'd care to join us, Mr. Wright?" The class' reaction must've made Finney notice I was there.

"Oh, right. Sure," I said. I practically floated into the room. Damn that man could kiss. The room was buzzing softly with hushed conversation, but I just didn't care. I'd found my center, and Tristan was it.

I went through class in a lucid daze. I felt like it was all a strange, sorta surreal dream, but I was in control, or at least moving the right ways. Finney tried to trip me up a half-dozen times, but it didn't matter